The University of Barcelona (UB), Bellvitge University Hospital (HUB) and the company ABEX Excelencia Robótica have created the UB - Bellvitge University Hospital - Abex Chair in Robotic Surgery, Its aim is to promote the teaching and research in this field within five surgical specialties. It is the second chair of its kind in Spain and the first with business backing
Joan Guàrdia, rector of the UB stresses that the alliance between the HUB and ABEX Excelencia Robótica "is a binomial of authority in robotic surgery and the University is the catalyst that, with this chair, will allow us to move towards the clinical care of the future".
The advent of minimally invasive surgery has brought about a revolution in all surgical specialties, making operations easier to perform, drastically reducing their aggressiveness, and maintaining or even improving clinical outcomes. “Robotic surgery is the main exponent of minimally invasive surgery,” says Ricard Ramos, professor at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of the UB, thoracic surgeon and head of studies at the HUB, who will be the director of the new chair.
“This continuous technological progress requires sub-specialised training, as well as permanent updating of the specialist. The new chair, which is transversal in nature, aims to promote the training mainly in five specialties: digestive, thoracic, gynaecological, urological and otorhinolaryngological surgery (as well as in those to be applied, with the creation of specific courses),” explains Ramos. Furthermore, he adds, “it aims to promote scientific debate through seminars and congresses in areas related to the chair and to establish networks with universities and national and international hospitals with a high reputation in robotic surgery.”
The chair belongs to the Bellvitge Campus of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of the UB. It will have a team of surgeons specialised in robotic surgery in all the above-mentioned specialties, as well as the facilities of the surgical block of the HUB, in addition to those of the Centre for Advanced Medical and Surgical Simulation, among others. The HUB is a benchmark hospital in robotic surgery. The centre performs around 600 operations a year with the Da Vinci robotic system, by the company ABEX Excelencia Robótica.
In 2020, more than 9,000 operations were performed with this robot in Spain and Portugal and more than 1.2 million worldwide. According to Pablo Díez, Business Director of ABEX Excelencia Robótica in Spain and Portugal, "the training of our clinicians is essential, so that technological innovations and the robotic approach are common practice in our operating rooms for the benefit of the patient, who will see their quality of life improved after surgery".
Within the framework of the chair, monographic sessions on robotic surgery will be organised, in addition to promoting short-term stays for surgeons. Grants will be given for research projects, and the Abex National Prize for the best publication on robotic surgery will be established.
The Da Vinci robotic system
The Da Vinci robotic system is currently the most innovative platform for minimally invasive surgery that is revolutionising the hospital field. More than eighty centres in Spain already have this aid in their operating rooms, with which they perform urological, thoracic, digestive, otorhinolaryngological and gynaecological oncological surgeries.
With the Da Vinci robotic system, the surgeon does not operate directly on the patient, but they sit at a console from where they virtually activate a pair of forceps. Three-dimensional vision with up to ten times magnification allows the clinician to work with great precision. The system translates the doctor's hand movements into impulses that are literally transmitted to the robotic arms, making it possible to reach areas that are difficult to access.
The advantages are unquestionable: with the Da Vinci surgical system it is easier to work on complicated anatomies; there is excellent visualisation of anatomical landmarks and tissue planes; and physiological tremor or involuntary movements of the surgeon are avoided, as well as postural fatigue after long hours of surgery. These advantages have a direct impact on the patient, as the size of the incisions is clearly smaller, resulting in a better and shorter postoperative period, less bleeding, less pain, less chance of complications and, in short, a quicker return to daily life. This also results in better management of the use of hospital facilities and resources.